The IRS reminds business taxpayers who placed qualifying property in service during 2017 but choose not to claim the new 100-percent depreciation deduction, that they have a limited time to file the required election with the IRS. In general, individuals and calendar-year corporations must file the election with the IRS by Oct. 15, 2018. The new 100-percent deduction allows businesses to write off most depreciable business assets in the year they are placed in service.

OVDP is more reasonable. Eight years of back taxes with penalties and interest. A reduced FBAR penalty - 27.5% of highest balance over eight years (50% if you used the wrong bank). No criminal charge. No prison time. The window closes on OVDP on September 28th.

Worldwide income means everything, including interest, foreign earnings, wages, dividends and other income. If your income is taxed somewhere else, you might be entitled to a foreign tax credit. If you are living and working abroad, you might be entitled to an exclusion from U.S. tax for some or all income earned abroad. But you still must report

Undisclosed foreign accounts or income can trigger big civil penalties, conceivably even criminal prosecution. Since 2009, many foreign accounts and income came within the IRS's enormous offshore enforcement efforts. Nearly 10 years on, not everyone has entered the IRS Offshore Voluntary Disclosure Program (OVDP). The program is closing, but there is still time to get in under the wire.